On Saturday, October 22, 2016, Mount Olive Free Will Baptist Church kicked off their very first “Pink Out Weekend” with a Breast Cancer Awareness breakfast at the Village Inn in Lakeland, Florida. Mae Farley, First Lady and event organizer, attributed the culmination of this event to God.
“This is a vision God placed on my heart. I want to do something every year for Breast Cancer Awareness to make women aware of the importance because some of them still don’t know,” said Mrs. Farley.
Farley stated that the first event was held last year during Sunday church service, but it was expanded this year to include a breakfast and “Pink Out Weekend” was officially established.
The first speaker, pharmacist Courtney Luster, shared her expertise on the subject. She provided the participants with a variety of facts and statistics such as family history is a risk factor that cannot be changed and that breast cancer rates continue to increase in African American women. She recommended that women get to know the family that they’re in to be aware of their risk factors, exercise moderately and vigorously on a regular basis, and ask their doctor questions. She also shared powerful scriptures such as Philippians 4:13- “I can do all things through Christ who strengthens me” to encourage and uplift the attendees. Lastly, Luster stated, “Mammograms are essential”.
The highlight of this breakfast was guest speaker and up and coming author Tangela Sails. She shared her testimony and courageous breast cancer journey from diagnosis to healing. She urged attendees to pay close attention to when “The Holy Spirit was at work” which was every step of the way. She spoke about how the Holy Spirit filled her with an unexplainable peace and said “I got you.” Ms. Sails exposes her deepest thoughts and feelings as she was diagnosed and treated for stage 2 invasive ductal carcinoma. In other words, stage 2 breast cancer. Her final words to the attendees were, “Remember to pay attention to your body, self examine your breasts, and listen to the Holy Spirit. Because when breast cancer is detected early, you have a 5 year survival rate of 98%. We have the choice to take control of our health. We have the power to beat cancer early.”
Attendees, survivors, and fighters benefited greatly from this event. One participant stated, “Each year I give myself a special birthday present, a mammogram.” A fighter stated, “Some days are better than others, but I make my lemons lemonade.” A survivor stated, “God is the man. He bore our sickness. He is the one I trust.”
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